Natasha Cloud - The Activist

BASKETBALL - POINT GUARD - WNBA - WASHINGTON MYSTICS

ARCHETYPE: THE ACTIVIST

Day 90/135

Athletic Accomplishments

Point guard Natasha Cloud is a keystone to the success of the Washington Mystics.

In high school, Cloud led her team to the Pennsylvania state finals two years in a row, earning First Team All-Delco honors in both seasons.

Cloud started her college career at the University of Maryland in 2010, but decided to transfer to St. Joe’s in 2011 to be closer to home and family, and to get more in-game playing time. In 2012, Cloud was selected as Defensive Player of the Year for the Atlantic 10 conference.

In the 2014-15 season she led the A10 in minutes played (37.6), and was selected First Team All-Conference and All-Defensive Team.

Cloud was drafted in the second round of the 2015 WNBA draft, 15th overall. In her first two seasons with the Mystics, she worked her way into the rotation. By 2018, Cloud had become the consistent, reliable starting point guard, executing the offense, playing hard-nosed on defense, and playing that vocal and communicative role you expect from a team leader.

In 2019, Cloud stepped up her role and game even more. She averaged 32 minutes a game, starting in all 34 games for the Mystics on their way to winning the WNBA Championship.

Character Archetype: The Activist

Tasha Cloud is the person you always want to have in your corner. As point guard for the Washington Mystics, she is not only a phenomenal floor martial, but the most vocal and encouraging player on the team, willing the Mystics to their first WNBA title in 2019. Along the way, Cloud campaigned… HARD… for her teammate Elena Delle Donne to win league MVP. And wouldn’t you know it, after Cloud spoke it into existence, that’s exactly what happened.

The WNBA is packed with powerful, outspoken women, who stand up for what they believe in. And among that impressive field, Cloud is a standout.

After the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, Cloud opted out of the 2020 WNBA season to focus on advocating for racial justice and against police brutality. She was a highly visible and vocal part of marches and protests in Washington, D.C. She pressured District of Columbia officials to make the Mystics’ arena as a voting site for the 2020 election. And when players in the NWSL wanted to show their support for Black Lives Matter, Crystal Dunn reached out to Cloud for help organizing.

And Cloud ain’t new to the game. In 2019, after a string of shootings near a D.C. elementary school, she organized a media blackout, where the Mystics refused to talk to the media, except to pressure D.C. officials to address gun violence.

Cloud sees activism as all in a day’s work.

“People will tell me, ‘You’re an activist! You’re an activist! I’m like, ‘No, I'm just a regular person who sees something wrong, and has a platform, and can use it to be a voice for the voiceless.’”

A true champion, on and off the court.